The Field Where I Died
by RavettiWrites
Summary: War is upon Enchancia. The battle is long, years in the making; while love is born amid the chaos, the harsh reality is that this is war and not every ending will be a happy one. Sometimes an ending is just that - the end. [Cedric, Sofia] WARNING: This is intended to be a very dark story line. Graphic scenes will be included.
1. Chapter 1

The darkened sky was pierced with a beam of light as dawn broke, the last glimmer of hope shining down on the ruined lands created mesmerizing fractal patterns in the billowing smoke. The latest battle had taken a heavy toll and the former lush green valley was, now, nothing more than tilled dirt stained a deep crimson. The air was still, thick, and almost viscous; the stench oozing a mixture of scorched earth and bitter copper metallic, hiding any trace of wildflower's scent once carried with the breeze. There were no sounds – no birds singing, no insects creeping or crawling, just the eerie quiet that death brings. Not even the wind ventured here anymore. Once upon a time this place was bountiful with life, now it was a deep wound that would leave scars and painful memories.

* * *

><p>For as long as anyone can remember, the kingdom of Enchancia had been a tranquil and harmonious place. Roland I, the first of his name but the third in his line, had been known as one of the most influential leaders that the people had ever come to know; his policies laid a promising foundation for the kingdom, giving everyone a purpose and sense of pride. His reign was long and prosperous and when Roland II stepped out of his father's shadow to reign, it was with continued benevolence and prosperity. The Royal Family had a reputation for being kind, generous, and peaceful; truly beloved by all.<p>

Roland II had made a name for himself as the King who ruled _with_ the people rather than for them. He listened to his people and, although sternly at times, he did what was best for them by encouraging their voices to rise up and be heard. It was also well-known that he was the first of his line, or any royal that had ever been, to marry outside of royalty; making him a local hero to the people, giving every child the hope that one day their dream of becoming a prince or princess may come true. In the wake of his marriage to a commoner, the age-old expectation of royals marrying to one another was abolished in Enchancia and the castle opened up to the village for the first time in its history; even, former 'Royal Only', events were welcoming of every person regardless of their stature. The kingdom had become a beacon of hope, a symbol of change, and the envy of lands far and wide.

Not everyone, however, was pleased with the direction that Enchancia had taken; although he tried to embrace the progressiveness, Magnus could not bear to see a kingdom fall to the mercy of _the people_. Magnus was the second in his line, first of his name, and ruler of the kingdom of Rudistan. He had a reputation for being boastful and an unquenchable thirst for the finest, stopping at nothing to attain it. As pompous as Magnus was, it was best to not mistake him for a fool; he knew that patience and the element of surprise were his allies. While everyone was distracted by the facade of arrogance, they didn't seen the predator hiding underneath that was waiting for the right moment to strike.

When rumors of Enchancia's 'Peasant Queen' and her daughter came to his kingdom, Magnus had to see for himself this commoner with a crown. He scheduled a visit at once, knowing that Roland would be eager to put on a show for him. While he traveled through the kingdom, he made certain to survey the lands and the people more closely than he ever had; he took mental notes on possible strong points and obvious weaknesses. During his visit, Magnus kept up appearances and greeted Miranda with open arms. He was careful to banter and quibble as he normally did with the exception of telling Roland that his sorcerer was superior. Later, he wondered if his false admittance had given any glimpse into his intentions; Cedric was a bumbling fool and the words of praise felt sour in the pit of his stomach. Magnus had seen this disgraceful mutt of a family and hid his disgust with ease as he moved among them.

Upon his return to Rudistan, there was turmoil within him; Magnus had known Roland since they were boys. They often discussed their boyhood ideals of ruling as the kings they were meant to be. They had made childhood promises to each other - to always be friends and rule their kingdoms together; naturally as they grew those promises gave way to reality, yet they always remained within each other's good graces. What Roland was doing with Enchancia would lead to rebellion throughout all the kingdoms. Moreover Magnus did not marvel at how Roland could be so cherished by his people, instead he envied that adoration and felt that it should be reserved for royalty who had no betrayed their bloodlines or houses. With his jaw clenched tight, Magnus made the decision – lay in wait, the right moment would come and he would have to take Enchancia for his own.


	2. Chapter 2

Sofia's debutante ball was coming up more quickly than she anticipated; although she had been considered a member of the Royal Family and addressed as, 'princess,' since she was a little girl, this was somehow different. Amber's debutante ball had been the previous year and Sofia was still in awe of how grand it was. There were so many choices to make, before invitations were officially extended, that were seemingly tedious but thankfully Amber would be coming home from her studies tomorrow and would be able to revel in the details that Sofia clearly didn't care about. She was, however, looking forward to choosing her suitor for the evening; many young men had asked Sofia who she would choose and offered their services but she only had one person on her mind – Cedric, always Cedric.

Throughout her childhood Sofia had always been friendly with Cedric, adding him to her arsenal of friends, and their friendship was pure and innocent. Over time Sofia had come to respect him as a person, not just as an authority figure, and in more recent years she had discovered that her feelings for Cedric ran deeper than she cared to admit. They had always relied on each other, confided in each other, and helped one another through difficult times – how could she not develop deeper feelings for him?

The choice of her suitor was entirely up to Sofia but her mind wandered and could almost hear the future whispers start to take form. Normally the suitor that accompanies the debutante is one that has intentions to court them. In this case, Sofia would like nothing more than to be courted by Cedric, even if he had appeared to be asexual all these years. Her biggest concern was what her father would say; Roland was never a fan of Cedric and always made it a point to belittle him, or mention that the Royal Family was 'stuck' with him, every chance that was given. Sofia wasn't even considering the difference in their age; nearly 20 years did seem a bit on the extreme side and she knew it would make some people uncomfortable.

The previous year, Amber's debutante ball was the first of its kind that Sofia had witnessed – traditionally held on or shortly after the 19th birthday, after graduation from Royal Preparatory, it was a royal's official introduction into high society. Before Amber's ball, no common villager had ever seen such an event. It was beautiful and overwhelming for Sofia; even after spending over a decade as a royal she still felt like an outsider at these types of things. This was also the first debutante ball that was open to non-royal families. Although Ruby and Jade attended the ball, they spent most of their time gawking at the princes from far-away lands and since Sofia had no interest in princes, she chose looming over the punch bowl with Cedric as her preferred activity of the night. It was that night that Sofia realized how smitten she had become with her sorcerer friend and mentor.

In the weeks after the ball Sofia found herself staring at Cedric greedily, daydreaming about him; whatever subject was at hand was lost to her and instead thoughts of the night of Amber's ball, and remembering how lovely it felt to dance with him, filled her mind. More often than not Cedric would catch her and make some snarky comment about her inability to focus. Sofia would always blush deeply but could swear that there was always a slight smile hidden behind his dry remarks.

Sofia had never really had a crush on anyone before; since this was her first time anyone really made her heart flutter she did what any young adult woman would in her position – fumbled over herself and said nothing. Now that her own ball was coming up, all she could think about was Cedric and how marvelous it would feel to have him by her side. She had made up her mind and knew she had to ask him. When she finally ascended his tower stairs to ask him, her stomach was in knots; when he said he would be honored she felt light-headed. She wasn't sure if Cedric felt obligated to honor her request or if he was genuinely happy, and she was so dazed by the experience of asking him in the first place that she failed to notice his reaction or subsequent expressions that may have given her any insight into the matter.

Before she realized it Sofia was back in her room without any real recollection of how she arrived there, which wasn't of any real surprise considering she was still floating aloft on images of Cedric bowing gracefully upon his acceptance of her request. The ball was still a few months away but she couldn't wait for that evening to unveil itself. All those tedious choices she had to make no longer seemed like a burden; she couldn't wait for her sister to arrive and join her in the planning.

As she lay in bed Sofia's mind raced from thoughts of flowers to music and then, of course, back to Cedric. She never felt more anxious and when she drifted off to sleep she couldn't help but imagine Cedric next to her as she hugged her pillow a little tighter.


	3. Chapter 3

**I know, I know, it has been a while since I've updated! Holidays and family vacations took priority over the story, however the updates should flow more regularly. In the next chapters we should be getting more Cedfia and some more dark story lines unfolding. Enjoy!**

Amber couldn't say she was surprised when Sofia told her about Cedric as her suitor of choice but she was definitely not thrilled with her decision. Sofia could was a beautiful young woman and could have her pick of any prince, a hidden talent that Amber envied from time to time, but instead she chose the much older and awkward sorcerer. Though she didn't agree with Sofia's choice, she understood why Sofia picked Cedric; ever since they were little girls there had been an obvious bond between the two of them – one that Amber never understood. Sofia had been quiet about her intentions with Cedric but Amber knew that her sister must have high hopes.

Per the "good sister" unspoken rule, Amber kept quiet about everything. She knew that her father would never approve of such a choice and wondered how long Sofia intended to wait before letting their family in on her little secret. Poor Sofia, James would never let her hear the end of this!

All of Amber's reservations were put aside at the thought of helping plan the party, more specifically – the reception. Amber was definitely the person to go to when planning a party; she could make even the simplest tea party the most talked about event for the following year. If she was being honest with herself, Amber knew that Sofia's taste was much more muted than her own and it was a relief knowing that Sofia's simple style would not outdo the grandness of Amber's ball.

The first day of planning started early, much to Sofia's dismay, but Amber was dedicated to her role. She showed up to Sofia's room as the sun rose with plenty of coffee and pastries, more accurately she had a member of the palace staff show up to Sofia's room with plenty of coffee and pastries as she arrived. They started by going over themes and color choices.

Sofia had always been partial to purple so Amber thought purples, silver, and black were a natural choice. Sofia agreed the color choices and was barely half awake when they moved on to the discussion of themes. Amber's theme was butterflies, with thousands of butterflies released and on-display during her ball. She thought that Sofia needed something lady-like but not too over-the-top. Sofia, in her morning haze and fondly recalling her late friend Clover, offered up bunnies as a suggestion. Needless to say, Amber was not amused and thought that the suggestion was childish – definitely not fitting for a new debutante!

After much discussion, and many more cups of coffee, Amber thought of the perfect theme – flowers! She told Sofia that flowers were simple, yet beautiful and lovely just like her. Sofia blushed at the complement and thanked her sister profusely. They giggled and laughed at each other over having taken an entire morning just to think of flowers as a theme.

Once the theme had been decided, everything else fell into place. Amber was excited for her sister and spent a lot of her time throwing herself into her, "work." She hadn't always loved Sofia like a sister, even becoming envious of her at times, but now it was like none of that mattered; she wouldn't have chosen anyone else to be her sister and felt so fortunate to have the family that she did.

The time continued to pass quickly as plans were made, details ironed out, and dates set in stone. Now that the date was officially set, people were abuzz with questions and speculations on who Sofia had chosen to be her suitor for the evening in question. Amber kept her unspoken promise and pretended to be just as clueless as everyone else; not even her twin suspected that she knew anything, but then again it was easy to distract James.

Sofia had confided in Amber that she was worried about what people would think over her choice of Cedric as her suitor for the night; she had been nervous and flooded with emotion the night she asked him and had mostly avoided him, aside from a few awkward encounters, ever since. Amber did her best to comfort his sister and quell her concerns but in the pit of her stomach she knew that this was going to be a big deal for a lot of the palace. Other than her brief interactions with Cedric to coordinate an outfit that was complimentary to Sofia's gown, Amber herself had limited interaction with the mysterious Royal Sorcerer.

Family dinner was not going to go well, Amber decided. Sofia had told her that she planned to bring up her choice in suitor over the small family dinner and needed her to back up her choice. Of course, Amber would always support Sofia but she couldn't help but feel like this was a disaster in the making. The decision couldn't wait any longer and there was no time left to find another suitor, even if Sofia wanted to change her mind.

As they filled the dining room, Amber smiled at her sister reassuringly and hugged her a little more tightly when they greeted each other. As they all chattered about the ball, the inevitable question of Sofia's suitor came up and rather than dance around the subject as she had previously done, she was calm and collected, quietly speaking Cedric's name out loud. Everyone was stunned, aside from Amber, and once she caught herself she pretended to act just as bewildered. As she predicted, it was a disaster and Sofia's choice was met with laughter, mocking, and harsh criticism. Amber stood for it as long as she could before speaking up and letting her family know that she was happy that Sofia was comfortable enough with the Royal Sorcerer to allow him to be part of her big day; she continued on to say that Sofia had always had an interest in magic and sorcery so this should come as no big surprise to anyone.

The mood softened after Amber spoke, Sofia silently thanked her from across the table, but the tone had changed for the evening and the rest of dinner was consumed in silence.


	4. Chapter 4

Both Roland and Miranda had been silent about Sofia's announcement since they left the dinner table, even though there were many things Miranda wanted to say, but now that they were up in their own room conversation began to flow freely.

Roland was furious and felt as though his daughter had been taken advantage of in some way. He paced the floor in their sitting room; it was not the first time he had done this, the evidence coming from the worn carpet having obviously seen its share of pacing. Finally, Roland came to sit on the corner of the bed and rest his head in his hands, half hunched over.

Miranda, now in her evening gown, could see the tension on Roland's face - the lines on his forehead were a dead giveaway. She sat down beside him and laid her head softly on his shoulder. She could have told him that he was the King and he could forbid it, she could have told him that she had seen this coming ever since Sofia was a young girl, but instead she simply reminded him that they were once considered an odd pair and the love they felt for one another was worth the initial outcry, after all, some traditions were meant to be done away with.

Per usual, Roland came up with excuses as to why this was not the same and then started pacing at the thought of Sofia and Cedric getting romantically involved. Miranda smiled softly and he stopped dead in his tracks. He knew she was right and her calm serenity finally washed over him.

He wasn't pleased but Roland thought that the right example to set is one of an accepting and loving King, especially when it came to Sofia's choices. He needed to be supportive at this critical time, of all his children, and what better show of support than announcing Sofia's choice publicly before the invitations went out. It was never usually done this way but Miranda was right, they were not the traditional family.


	5. Chapter 5

The announcement swept over the kingdoms like a fire ravaging dry brush-lands. The Royal Sorcerer as chosen suitor for the youngest Princess of Enchancia; needless to say that the rumors were flying and the buzz was so loud that it seemed to drowned out talk of anything else.

Magnus sat alone in his throne room, after having hastily dismissing his servants, deep in thought and with the announcement from Enchancia crumpled in his hand. Ever since his initial decision to overthrow Roland, he struggled over whether or not this was the right move. He hated Roland for putting him in this position. If he didn't react, especially now, then it would be the end of an era for all Kingdoms.

Before he knew it, Magnus found himself walking the castle grounds silently. He often wandered about, deep in thought, and this was not a new sight to see for the castle staff; most knew to stay far away from their King when he was walking in a daze. As he lost himself deeper in though, Magnus found himself recalling fond moments from his youth – days often spent with Roland.

_Unlike Roland's father, Magnus's father was not a man with a kind hand, nor one kind with his words. One particularly terrible experience was shortly after the Royal Talent Festival. All royalty from near and far gathered as their progeny competed for attention. Roland's father was always encouraging and told both the boys to try their best, telling Roland that he was proud of him no matter what. Magnus's father, upon Magnus dropping the objects in his complicated juggling act, promptly excused himself and left; when Magnus arrived later that evening, after Roland saw him home, his father beat him mercilessly. It was not the first time, it would not be the last, and when it was all over Magnus turned to Roland for support. _

Tears welled in Magnus's eyes as he remembered how the welts lasted for days. His heart, his emotions, they were taking over… he couldn't let that happen. As heavy as the burden was, Magnus found his resolve and ignored the gnawing guilt.

He returned to his throne room, calling for his steward to assemble the war council in secret and at once. Within minutes, faceless men surrounded Magnus as he laid out his plan. Suggestions in matters of strategy hissed, departing with malice from unknown lips. The session lasted well into the early morning hours and by the end the matter was settled. War was coming.


End file.
